Final answer:
The current time is 1:45 pm, calculated by deducting the 15-minute lapse since the previous bus left from the departure time of the next bus, which is at 2:00 pm.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks to determine the current time knowing that a bus leaves for Manali every hour, the last bus left 15 minutes ago, and the next bus is scheduled to leave at 2:00 pm. To solve this, we subtract the 15-minute interval from the next bus's departure time.
If the next bus leaves at 2:00 pm and the schedule is every hour, that means the previous bus left at 1:00 pm. Since the last bus left 15 minutes ago from the current time, we subtract 15 minutes from 2:00 pm. Therefore, 1:45 pm is the current time.
Step-by-step solution:
Subtract the interval since the last bus departure from the next departure time: 2:00 pm - 1 hour = 1:00 pm.
Subtract the time since the last bus left from the next bus's departure time to find the current time: 2:00 pm - 15 minutes = 1:45 pm.